Magical Growth Spurt
by graveofbutterflies
Summary: Steven, just as he thought his life was normal again (or as normal as it could be) experiences another suprise he's not sure what to think of.


**A/N:**

**This is set in-between change your mind and the movie**

**Amethyst mentioned Steven's new height as if it happened suddenly, so I kinda wrote this so enjoy!**

The sun rose on Beach City, streaming through thin glass windows and cracks in doors. Already some citizens of the town had woken up and were busy; Mr Fryman was preparing to open, Mr Smiley was polishing off the arcade machines and Major Nanafua was striding around the streets, making sure that everyone was okay and happy for another day.

Steven was one of the first to wake from his sleep surprisingly quickly. He rolled onto his side, stretching. His toes brushed the end of the bed, something that had never happened before, and Steven let out a small yelp, thinking it was a bug.

_Phew… _Steven thought in relief, spotting that his feet were not covered in spiders. He yawned, blinking owlishly at his feet for a few seconds – something was different, but his sleepy mind couldn't place what.

_Huh? _Steven looked from his feet to his blanket, tilting his head. The familiar material was only just touching his ankles – he couldn't sworn that last night it covered him completely.

_It must've shrunk! _Steven's mind came up with a quick answer. _Amethyst did do the washing last night so maybe…_

His thoughts were interrupted by the sight of the beach through his window, bright and sunny. Steven laughed, pulling off his shrunken blanket and running to the bathroom. He and Amethyst had planned to make giant sand houses that morning if the weather was nice enough (there had been a few frequent showers lately) and the outside world was the best Steven had seen all week, which meant a long day of house building.

As he skidded to the sink, Steven noticed that the bathroom seemed different. He stopped, staring at the walls in suspicion. Placing a finger on his chin, he turned on the spot, humming.

_Maybe the walls have been painted…_he mused, _a slightly different shade that I never noticed before. _The half-gem shook his head to rid the thought, grabbing a flannel to wash his face with. He didn't look up at the mirror as he did so, deciding to brush his teeth after he had breakfast. He wondered whether Amethyst would help him cook something – usually Pearl or Garnet would, but they were away on a mission.

_Where is Amethyst? _Steven wondered, stumbling as he exited the bathroom. On top of everything, he seemed to be more clumsy that morning, bumping into doorways and tripping over his own feet.

He sat on this bed, pulling out some clothes out of his drawer. He smiled at the bright yellow star, slipping off his pyjama top (which felt tighter that morning for some reason) and tugging that one on.

"Huh?" Steven let out a small noise of surprise, staring down at this shirt. The usually snug shirt felt tight and stretched, only reaching just above his navel no matter how hard he tugged. It looked like a crop top, not a loose t-shirt. His confusion only grew as he pulled on his pants, only for them to look more like shorts. The material was digging into his skin and he sighed loudly.

_Has Amethyst shrunk all my clothes? _He huffed, shifting uncomfortably. He thought of going to pick another set but declined, hoping that Pearl would be back soon to fix them – he liked the star too much.

Shrugging, he jumped onto the wooden floorboards, slipping into his sandals. Instead of fitting snuggly like they usually would, the straps dug painfully into his toes and his heels were hanging over the edges of the soles by a few inches.

Steven was now growing suspicious. It was one thing for his clothes to shrink, but his sandals?

"What's going on?!" He yelled out. He grabbed his throat. It sounded lower and more like his dad's, as if he was…

An adult?

"No way!" Steven jumped at the low pitch his voice now seemed to be. "I'm just tired, or sick! How can this even happen?!" He raked a hand through his hair, making it spring upwards. "Wait! Amethyst would know!"

Steven dashed downstairs, banging his head hard on the doorframe. With a yelp, he lost his balance on his larger feet and toppled down the remaining stairs, landing on his face.

"Aw man dude! You like, flew down there!" Amethyst was standing beside him, eating some crisps. She paused as Steven lifted up his head.

"Hey, aren't you…bigger?" Amethyst tilted her head, tipping the rest of the crisps down her throat. Steven just looked at her, moving so he was sitting on his knees.

The purple gem suddenly burst out laughing; Steven started at her in disbelief, eyes watering.

"Aw man, good one dude!" She gasped in between her laughter, eating the crisp _packet _itself.

"Amethyst, I'm not kidding –"

"I've rumbled you now! You gotta drop the act!" Amethyst giggled. "You got me _good, _to be fair –"

"Amethyst!" Steven interrupted, louder than intentional. His new voice still sounded strange to him, and he subconsciously rubbed his throat.

Amethyst stopped laughing immediately, staring at Steven as tears slowly rolled down his cheeks. Just yesterday he was how he should be, and now he was bigger – older? It was too much, and Amethyst laughing brought it fully into reality. He thought of how everyone else would react – probably the same as Amethyst – and it made his chest tighten.

"I'm…I'm not kidding! I woke up like this…" Steven explained quietly, leaning on the stairs. His sandals dug into his feet harder, so he kicked them off.

Amethyst stood beside him for a second, still. She blinked owlishly, mouth opening.

"You had a magical growth spurt?" She asked in confusion. Steven nodded.

"I think so…but I don't think I can go back…"

The purple gem sighed, sitting down beside him. Steven looked up as she moved, shuffling closer to him.

"I didn't realise…I kinda feel bad for laughing." Amethyst muttered. She placed a hand around his shoulder, looking at him up and down. When Steven didn't answer, she continued the conversation. "I mean, you're taller than me now…"

"I am?" Steven wiggled his feet, frowning. "Yeah…I guess so…"

Amethyst mirrored his expression. Steven looking glum was just strange, like imagining a timid Garnet or a lazy Pearl. It wasn't nice.

"Hey dude!" Amethyst slapped his back, grinning. "You could totally go on those giant rides now!" She smiled when Steven looked up at her, grinning.

"Yeah!" He shouted excitedly. "Or – Hey! I could reach the tops shelves in the Big Donut!" He giggled, and so did Amethyst.

"I won't have to throw you anymore!" Amethyst added, making Steven laugh louder.

"Or…" Steven stopped laughing suddenly, sighing.

"What is it, dude?" The purple gem asked. She decided to shape-shift into a cat, curling up on Steven's lap. Steven giggled, stroking her fur.

"Amethyst…Pearl doesn't like it when you leave fur everywhere…"

"Yeah, well I'll turn back when she returns." Amethyst reassured. She looked up at the clock. "Which should be soon…so what's got you upset?" The gem purred. "I would love to be taller!"

Steven frowned.

"I can't even fit into my own clothes anymore…" The half-gem sighed. "Everything's changed – how are people gonna react to me being taller?"

Before Amethyst could answer, the warp pad activated in a flash of light. The gem rolled off Steven's lap, running to the source of light as the two Crystal Gems came into view, holding a small egg of silver.

"We should put this in the temple before it hatches –" Pearl began, but stopped when she saw Amethyst standing in front of them. "Oh, hello Amethyst!" She greeted. Garnet waved next to her, smiling.

"Err, hi – look, I gotta tell ya something!" The purple gem dropped her voice to a whisper. She glanced behind her, seeing that Steven was staring at his lap again, frowning. He hadn't even seemed to realised that she had left.

"Hmm?" Garnet followed her gaze, pursing her lips. "What's wrong with Steven?"

"Steven?!" Pearl's voice rose until Amethyst shushed her, tugging her arm.

"Err, well you know how on his birthday he said he had that "magical growth spurt"?" The two gems nodded.

"It's happened for real?" Garnet guessed, shifting her glasses again. Pearl put a hand over her mouth when Amethyst nodded.

"He must be so confused…" she whispered, peering over the purple gem's shoulder.

"Yeah…confused is a good word." Amethyst agreed.

"Come on, gems." Garnet stood up from her crouch. The three walked over to where Steven was sat, fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

All three gems sat around him in a circle and Steven looked up at each of them, tilting his head.

"You've grown." Garnet began, a small smile creeping on her lips.

"Yeah…" Steven sighed, frowning further.

"An' you're still as perfect as ever." The fusion finished, grinning. "Look at you – you are doing this your own fabulous way."

Steven blushed slightly, smiling.

"Aww…Guys…"

"Oh this is so exciting!" Pearl smiled, holding Steven's hand. "Just think of all the fun we'll have shopping for new clothes! New colours, new designs…I was even thinking a jacket, what do you think?"

Steven grinned happily, stars shining in his eyes.

"Yeah! They could be pink!"

The three gems chuckled.

"But dude, we gotta stop at the fair fist and go on all those crazy rides!" Amethyst cheered him up, acting more excited than she actually was.

"Really?" Steven looked unsure, gesturing to his legs. "But I look different now…"

"Different ain't bad." Garnet made a heart with her two hands, placing them on her chest. "We love bein' different here."

"You can say that again." Pearl agreed, whist Amethyst cheered. Steven giggled.

"You are your own brilliant person." Garnet took of her shades, staring at him with all three of her eyes.

"Wouldn't have you any other way." Pearl smiled, wrapping an arm around Steven.

"Even if you are taller than me!" Amethyst joked, and grinned when Steven laughed.

"Thanks guys." He smiled, pulling them into a hug. Garnet, with a huge grin, picked them all up as they embraced, dashing out of the door.

"Come on! We've got a fair to go to!"


End file.
